Coroner Took Bribes of 30,000-35,000 AMD from Relatives of the Deceased: NSS

The National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia, prioritizing the fight against various manifestations of corruption, has obtained factual data through operational-intelligence measures and investigative actions carried out within the framework of its legally prescribed functions pertaining to anti-corruption. It has been established that the head of the forensic expert department of the State Medical University of the Ministry of Health, empowered to conduct forensic examinations assigned by law enforcement agencies, along with employees performing autopsies in the same department, has accepted bribes ranging from 30,000 to 35,000 AMD from the relatives of around 60 deceased individuals between November 2019 and December 26, 2019, totaling a significant amount of 2,100,000 AMD.

Following this apparent criminal act, individuals suspected of committing the crime have been apprehended and detained by the investigative department of the NSS in accordance with the relevant articles of the Republic of Armenia's Criminal Code. Several accomplices of the head of the department have also been arrested, and he has been charged, with the court selecting pre-trial detention as a measure of restraint. The investigation is ongoing, and measures are being taken to uncover all criminal incidents that occurred during the official's tenure and to identify individuals involved in the corrupt chain.